Quick catch-up for anyone who missed the first two seasons of The Royals: Prince Robert – rightful heir to the throne – was believed dead, sparking a power struggle within the British monarchy.

But as E!'s outrageous drama returns for a third season, Robert is revealed to be alive... and the twists don't stop there.

"It takes a few episodes to discover where he's been and what's the truth that lies behind that," says Max Brown, who's cast as the resurrected prince. "On this show, there's always another twist around the corner – so the fans have got a lot to look forward to!"

Robert was believed to have been killed when his plane was shot down – but when season three picks up, we discover he's alive and still trapped on a remote island.

"Whether I make it back to the palace or not is still questionable," teased Brown. "Obviously there's a lot of news to be broken to Robert if he does find his way home. His father's been murdered, his uncle is now king and his brother and sister may not even be his brother and sister!"

Early press shots from the season not only revealed Brown's rugged look as Robert – all khaki shorts and unkempt beard – but the presence of a mysterious blonde on the island. So who is she?

"That is someone from my past, who helps me to make a very important decision about what I'm going to do," Brown revealed. "But that's all I can tease about that!"

Brown – formerly of Agent Carter, Beauty and the Beast and Spooks – told Digital Spy that Robert's "rollercoaster" arc this season was what convinced him to sign onto The Royals.

"I met Mark Schwahn [series creator] and he sold me on the whole mentality of the show and promised me this incredible arc. He definitely lived up to his promises!

"It scared me a bit coming into a show where they have a lot of expectation for the character. I've joined lots of different shows over the years, but this was different because it was already an established family and I'm playing a sibling.

"But as the cast goes, they were so welcoming. I apologised to Elizabeth [Hurley, who plays Queen Helena] when I met her, because she would've had to have been about 15 in real-life to have had me!"

Brown says that, as the rightful heir, Robert has "a lot of responsibility on his shoulders" – but hinted that he still gets involved in some typically outrageous The Royals moments...

"He's a bit more serious, Robert, so I didn't get to have quite as much fun as maybe Eleanor (Alexandra Park) or Liam (William Moseley) do... but there's still moments that I thought, 'Wow – we're doing this, OK!'."